The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman

Saphora Warren seems to have it all. Beautiful homes, a successful husband and adult children, but something is missing. After a photo shoot for Southern Living, Saphora plans to escape to their summer home in Oriental North Carolina. She hopes to just have quiet time to do whatever she wants, when she wants. Her escape is cut short when her plastic surgeon husband comes home early, and before she can get on the road he tells her that he is dying. Life can change in an instant and how Saphora copes with it and the many people around her, is the premise of this story.

Dealing with all the sudden changes in the life of Saphora and her husband is a somewhat complicated story. The adult children, some married and with children of their own and even the children's friends add to this story. Saphora's husband Bender and his doctor friends and the ladies that he has had flings with also add to the story and give us a look at what Saphora has put up with during her marriage to Bender. Somehow it feels like too much of this story is left out. I get the feeling that Bender and Saphora have been living separate lives, but living in the same home. It was a bit difficult for me to understand how Saphora seemed to be a bit out of touch with Bender and was more concerned with her own need for time alone when he was on limited time here on Earth. Did she really need to go off alone on a fishing trip alone or go sneaking through the fence to spy on the neighbor guy when her first concern should have been her husband? I know that not everyone will see this story the way that I do, but that's what makes life and reading books interesting. I wasn't happy with the ending of the story either. It seemed nuts. The few encounters these people actually had doesn't seem like a romance that will endure.

Read the book and decide for yourself. I did enjoy reading it, but was annoyed at a few turns in the story, but most of my annoyance was with Saphora. She had a lot in her life, and did welcome others and help quite a few people, but there was also this feeling that she was just selfish toward her husband and toward Sherry who had her own life, but seemed to always have to give up her own life to run when Saphora called.

This book was provided to me by WaterBrook Press to read and review.